by Muslim Council of America
A growing number of Muslims, especially in the US and Canada, now identify with an Islam that is non denominational. They can simply be called Muslims, however, if anyone wants to distinguish them as a separate category, they may be described Non Denominational Muslims or NDM.
Who are they and what do they believe in?
They, like rest of the Muslims, believe in monotheism, in the prophethood and in the day of resurrection. They accept the Quran as the last divine testament or message. They believe in the concept of permitted and not permitted as defined by the Quran. They believe in the sunnah of the Prophet as is spread throughout the Quran and those statements of the Prophet that are essentially substantiated by the d...

Saleem Ahmed, Ph.D.
President, Pacific Institute for Islamic Studies and the All Believers Network (both are Hawaii-based organizations)
INTRODUCTION:
All religions provide their followers with a “prescription” for living a peaceful life and preparing for the Hereafter. In this process, it is but natural that often followers think of their own religion as the “best”, with views of other religions ranging from neutral to outright contempt. The latter, unfortunately, often turns out to be an exercise in futility because followers of the “other” religion, not being moved by such emotional rhetoric, simply label such views as “phobic” and possibly get even more firmly entrenched in their views about their religion and actions prescribed....

By Dr. Aslam Abdullah
It was a sensational revelation yet; it could not generate enough discussion even among those who were directly affected by the disclosure. The Facebook acknowledged receiving advertisement money from Russian interest groups for posts announcing anti-Muslim rallies in Idaho in 2016. The revelation was seen as yet another proof of the Russian meddling in US elections. However, few bothered to delve deep into the Russian instigated Islamophobia in the US and the Western World. A cursory look at the background of known Islamophobes indicates a Russian hand directly or indirectly in anti-Islam rhetoric especially in the US.
The Idaho anti-Muslim rally became a springboard of similar rallies across the country. But Idaho rally is not the only event...

Saleem Ahmed, Ph.D. President of the Honolulu-based Pacific Institute of Islamic Studies.
While growing up in Karachi, I learned that belief in God, prayers, fasting, haj, and zakat are referred to as the “Five “Pillars of Islam”; that these were the “essential” requirements to be a Muslim; and that without fulfilling these obligations, no person could be a Muslim or think of entering Paradise. I tucked this information at the back of my head and did not pay much attention any further until the following incident jolted me:
On a trip to Pakistan, I met an acquaintance (let’s call him Faheem) who greeted me warmly and, in response to my question, informed me that he had become “very happy, mashallah”. I congratulated him and inquired as to what was t...

by Saleem Ahmed, Ph.D. President, Pacific Institute for Islamic Studies, Honolulu
SUMMARY
Some Muslims become radicalized because they follow superseded Qur'anic verses instead of the superseding verses. If this can be corrected, most of the confusion and the resulting radicalization could end quickly. This needs understanding the chronology of Qur'anic revelations and contextualizing their meanings where necessary.
Many more Qur’anic verses promote violence than peace. Thus, non-Muslims cannot be faulted for concluding that Islam is not a religion of peace, especially when the actions of some extremist Muslims continue to confirm this perception. Starting as a spiritual movement when Muhammad lived in Medina (610-622 CE), Islam evolved into a ...

by Muhammad Fraser-Rahim, Baltimore Sun.
Since 9/11, we have seen efforts by ISIS, al-Qaida and other violent extremists to recruit African American Muslims to their cause, preying on a collective sense of injustice and feelings of deprivation and social alienation from historic inequities. In 2008, for example, al-Qaida's then second-in-command Ayman al Zawahiri sought to interlace domestic African American racial grievances with the global jihad movement, targeting and recruiting African American and Somali youth. A 51-minute recruitment video presented motifs of Malcolm X, attempting to exploit historical African American Muslim activism as a potential means for future radicalization.
In a few cases, such efforts have been successful: Edward Archer attacked a Phil...

Saleem Ahmed, PhD. President, Pacific Institute for Islamic Studies, Honolulu.​
ABSTRACT
The centuries-old lawlessness rampant in pre-Islamic Arabia, which compelled
terrified women to veil themselves as protection against potential rapists, was
transformed into a lawful society during the 23 years of Muhammad’s prophethood.
Women could then move around freely, dressed modestly, without the need to
"protect" themselves by wearing a veil. However, since the Qur’an’s non-
chronological arrangement precludes the possibility of tracing this transformation,
some Muslim women continue to veil themselves in the belief it is required. This
suggests the need for Muslims to understand the chronology of the evolving guidance
on various subjects. Th...

by Sarah Lyons-Padilla and Michele J. Gelfand, New York Times
There were many reasons to oppose President Trump’s travel ban on refugees and visitors from seven predominantly Muslim countries, which is now blocked by a federal court’s temporary restraining order. Unfortunately, those same objections are also likely to apply to the revised version of the executive order that Mr. Trump promised on Thursday, which will share with its predecessor the goal of “immediately protecting the country” — presumably by keeping out people from countries he deems to be a threat.
One objection to such policies is that there is no good evidence that citizens of the countries the president has singled out so far present a significant threat to the United States. Another is t...

By Latin TimesHappy New Year's Day! A new year is upon us which means it's time to look back on our accomplishments and think about how we can continue growing as individuals on the year ahead. Sometimes life can be hard and stressful and we forget about all the small strides we make because negativity overpowers us.
We might have taken a step back, but the idea is to take two steps ahead and confront the challenges life presents us and overcome it with a positive attitude and having hope that everything will turn out all right. We have rounded up quotes of inspiration that will surely give you hope for the year ahead. Good luck!
1. “Tomorrow is the first blank page of a 365 page book. Write a good one.” (Brad Paisley)
2. ...

​by Ruby Amatalla, ​Executive Director, Muslims for Peace, Justice, and Progress​, Huffington Post​
In spite of Donald Trump’s campaign rhetoric and, subsequently, his victory, Muslims in America should remain optimistic. His use of the growing anti-Muslim sentiments in the United States of America (America) were for a political gain during the election is reminiscent of vicious McCarthyism in the 1950s. However, Senator McCarthy’s ruthless drive in hate and fear mongering against the Communists for political purposes was brought to an end by the discourse with the American public initiated by courageous people like Edward R. Murrow, a broadcast journalist. His words were simple and straight forward: he said “We will not walk in fear, one of another. We wi...